Terence Nombembe: Six quick facts on state capture’s head of investigations

Right man for the job?

Terence Nombembe may not be a familiar name to many, but for those of you getting a sense of déjà vu, it’s understandable to see why.

He’s been appointed the head of investigations for the state capture inquiry. He was chosen to lead the team by Deputy Chief Justice Raymond Zondo. Nombembe has previously served as the Auditor-General for South Africa, from 2006 – 2013.

But what do we need to know about the man now responsible for bringing Jacob Zuma and the Gupta family to justice? We’ve done a bit of digging to see if he really is the right man for the job.

Everything you need to know about Terence Nombembe:

He’s been declared a hero by Corruption Watch

Well, that’s some start, isn’t it? Corruption Watch is an organisation that research and investigate individual complaints into illegal financial activity.

Back in 2013, they lauded Nombembe’s tenure as Auditor General. They made him one of their “heroes of the week”, for serving South Africa with courage and distinction, and for maintaining the credibility of the position of auditor-general.

Nombembe is used to working for the people, not the government

During his much-loved spell as South Africa’s AG, Nombembe wasn’t answerable to any particular Minister. He was trusted to do his own thing, and serve the constitution first and foremost. He ended 2013 as a “model civil servant“, according to the Mail and Guardian. Blimey, talk about Mr Popular, eh?

His parents taught him the values of truth

On a podcast with Alec Hogg a few years ago, Nombembe was asked about what attracted him to his line of work. The former AG explained that he has always had a conviction towards doing the right thing, because of his mom and dad:

“I think it did come from the parental guidance and for me, that discipline I got when I was growing up, I never saw it as torture, and neither did I see it as a burden, but I saw it as something that was grooming me to be a useful person in society.”

He has a hat-trick of degrees to his name

Knowledge is power, as they say. Terence Nombembe is obviously a well-educated guy and he has three university degrees to back that up.

He studied at both the University of Transkei where he completed his Bachelor of Commerce in 1982, and the University of South Africa where he completed his BCompt (Honours) in 1986. He then scored an Honorary Doctorate in Accounting Science from the Walter Sisulu University in 2014.

In this inquiry, he’ll certainly be keeping his friends close…

A blot on the copybook, perhaps? Back in 2013, Ace Magashule was full of praise for the would-be head of investigations in the state capture probe.

Magashule waxed lyrical about how great relations were between his Free State office and that of the Auditor-General’s. Of course, back in 2013, Ace Magashule was allegedly helping the Guptas launder money through the province, thanks to the Estina Dairy Farm scam. Will Nombembe take a second look at Ace now?

He’s been called “the Thuli Madonsela” of his field

It was Alex Hogg of Biz News who first coined the term, and because it makes such a good sound bite, it seems to have stuck. The irony will be lost on no-one, considering Madonsela’s State of Capture report is seen as the moment government and Gupta corruption was rumbled.

If he’s anything like the former Public Protector, then you can expect to see some very high-profile names being thrown behind bars someday soon.